On the Southeast corner of Mallorca, just South of Santanyí, is a small beach called Cala des Moro. Word has gotten out that this is one of the most beautiful beaches in Mallorca, so plan to get there early if you want to avoid having to edit out too many people for your Instagram photos.
During the summer months, the neighborhood where Cala des Moro is located is blocked off to traffic. You will have to park in a parking lot on Camí de Cala Llombards, and then walk about 1 Km to get to Cala des Moro. I do not recommend ignoring the warnings that only local residents are allowed to drive through the neighborhood, because there were in fact police officers writing tickets to those who ignored the warnings.
As you get closer to the beach, there are a few small openings in the trees where you can get some stunning views of Cala des Moro below. We got there quite early and so the reflection of the sun rising on the water took away from the blue color but it was worth it when we got down to the beach and there were very few people. Follow your GPS to the beach and then on the left there is a wooden swinging door that leads to the path that goes to Cala des Moro.
During the summer there was a vendor selling drinks at the top of the path but I doubt they are there year round. As you get closer to the beach there are a few steep steps to go down in order to reach the beach below, but path is not difficult in general. The beach is quite small though, and within 1 hour of arrival there was almost no space on the sand for anyone to put down a towel.
Once you climb down to the sand you will see some small caves behind the beach. It’s a nice place to escape the sun for a few minutes and provides a cool backdrop for some photos.
We spent 3 months during the summer of 2018 exploring the beaches of Mallorca. We tried not to go to the same beach twice, but there were a few that we loved and just had to go back. In the Mondragó Natural Park, located on the southeast coast of Mallorca just east of Santanyí, there are 3 beautiful beaches within walking distance of each other. They are Playa S’amarador, Cala Mondragó, and Cala d’en Borgit.
There are 2 ways to arrive. The first is to type S’amarador into Google Maps. This will lead you to the parking lot located to the west of the 3 beaches. You will need to walk about 5 minutes from the parking lot to S’amarador beach, the first, and largest of the 3 beaches. At the time of writing, Google Maps was leading us to a fork in the road where the road on the left was closed to non-residents. You will also get there by taking the road to the right but the route that Google Maps uses to get to S’amarador is definitely not the most direct route. The second option is to type Mondragó Natural Park into Google Maps. This will lead you to another parking lot, and from there you can walk down to Cala Mondragó in about 7 or 8 minutes (pictured above).
Mondragó Natural Park is about a 1 hour drive from Palma de Mallorca, but it’s worth it. The water is a beautiful blue and is great for taking photos. There are 3 food outlets on the beach. At the first beach, S’amarador, there is a small snack bar that sells sandwiches and ice cream. At Cala Mondragó, the middle beach, there are 2 full service restaurants right on the beach. The menu is extensive and includes typical Spanish tapas, pastas, pizzas, pork cutlets (chuletas) and much more. There are also many options for drinks, slushies, and ice cream. While the prices are slightly higher than what you might pay elsewhere, they really are quite reasonable.
As you approach the first beach (S’amarador) from the parking lot, you can cross the beach and reach a walk way along the rocks to reach Cala Mondragó. It only takes about 10 minutes to walk from Playa S’amarador to Cala Mondragó but the views of the blue water are stunning and there are many great photo ops along the way.
This photo to the right was taken on another day as we were walking back along the path from Cala Mondragó toward Playa S’amarador. While it might be tempting to jump off the rocks into the water, it is prohibited and there are a few people walking around to ensure nobody does it (during the summer months at least). It is quite difficult to judge the depth of the water from above.
Out of the 3 beaches, our favorite is actually Cala d’en Borgit (pictured to the right). It is the smallest out of the three beaches, but it is the least crowded because you have to walk for about 5 minutes from Cala Mondragó on a path through the woods. It is not a difficult path at all, but it is not clearly marked and I think many people don’t even realize it’s there.